From This Moment - By Alison Chaffin Higson

Chapter 1

~~ Rona ~~

Chicago’s O’Hare transit lounge is a place that, three days ago, I was looking forward to visiting. It was to be our honeymoon and part of our own personal transit into married life together. As I stand alone, looking around, trying to decide which way to head to wait for my onward flight to Jackson Hole, I feel lost and I’m not really sure what I’m doing here.

Nick, my fiancé, or rather ex-fiancé, told me he’s too young to get married and left me an hour before we were supposed to be taking our vows. He’s thirty, so not exactly too young to get married in my book.

So that’s why I’m taking our honeymoon flight to Jackson, alone. Don’t quite know what I’m going to do when I get there. Originally a friend of Nick’s had given us his cabin for a month as a wedding present. A romantic holiday in a secluded forest isn’t really an option now, and to be honest, I want nothing to do with him or his friends anymore.

Taking a few deep breaths while turning away from the departures board, I notice a coffee shop. Entering, I go and purchase a vanilla latte then find a quiet corner to rest up. Taking a few sips of my drink, I reach into my purse for my iPad to read until my flight is called. At least someone will get a happy ending.

After about thirty minutes, I get the feeling that I’m being watched. Reaching for my coffee, while discreetly looking up, I clash with the eyes of a really good looking guy. He’s sitting one table over, staring at me with what looks like hunger in his sparkling green eyes. It’s so difficult to look away, but I manage it, telling myself I’m only imagining the way he’s looking at me.

Having looked everywhere I can to avoid his eyes, I look back at him. He’s still looking at me; I decide that I’m not going to be embarrassed and return his stare. He’s really hot and I mean hot, like wow. He looks to be considerably older than my twenty-four years, but I’ve always been attracted to older men. He looks older than Nick, maybe between thirty-five and forty. He sure is handsome though.

I start my once over from the tip of his tan cowboy boots. My eyes travel up his long, jean clad, muscular legs to his chest, and by the way his t-shirt moulds to his chest, he looks to have a six pack hidden under there. He has broad shoulders which I guess he gets from manual labour as opposed to working out in a gym. He just doesn’t seem the gym type. He wears his dark hair longer at the back with it curling over his ears.

I study his face. It’s a strong handsome face, partially covered by his five o’clock shadow which gives him a lazy look, but there’s probably nothing lazy about him. His green eyes are just dazzling; a girl could get lost in them and never find her way out.

Somewhere, during my ogling, I’ve lost track of what I’m doing and forgotten he’s watching me. And boy, his hungry look has turned ravenous during my exploration of his body.

~~ Cade ~~

On entering the coffee shop, my first thought is that she looks so sad. I grab myself a much needed black coffee and feel drawn to where she’s sitting; I take a seat at an empty table, one over from hers.

She’s slim built with long legs, slim torso and breasts that look big enough to just fill my hands.

Glancing up to make sure she hasn’t spotted me looking at her body, I take in her long dark hair, it looks so soft and I wonder what it smells like. She’s wearing well worn jeans with boots accompanied by a long sleeved t-shirt, no jewelry that I can see, but her hands are in her lap holding her iPad, so I can’t check for rings.

I glance back up to her face where I’m met by her blue eyes. She seems embarrassed to find me looking her over and looks away quickly pretending to be interested in her iPad again. It’s in that moment that I realize how young she looks, maybe in her early twenties, which makes me cringe. I’m forty-five and old enough to be her father.

She’s stunning and I can barley control my gaze. She’s the first woman I’ve been really drawn to in close